


Problem Child

by aleksrothis



Category: Men's Hockey RPF
Genre: 2010-2011 NHL Season, Age Regression/De-Aging, Gen, Post-Trade Coda, cameos by Jamie Benn and Loui Eriksson
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-01
Updated: 2020-07-10
Packaged: 2021-03-04 04:33:53
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 8,184
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24867646
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/aleksrothis/pseuds/aleksrothis
Summary: Tyler knows weird shit happens in hockey, okay, so he shouldn't have been surprised when he opened his hotel room door to find Looch standing there with a screaming child in his arms.“He can be your problem now,” Looch tells him, holding the child out to him. “I need a drink.”
Comments: 21
Kudos: 111





	1. Tyler Meets Tiny Tuukka

**Author's Note:**

> I feel in love with the idea of disaster rookie!Tyler somehow being the one person who could handle de-aged Tuukka and this is the result.

Tyler knows weird shit happens in hockey, okay? He played in the O, he's seen plenty. Sure, showing up with suddenly pink hair wasn't the worst, unlike Brownie who'd turned into a surprisingly hot chick, but not as cool as the youngest Staal brother who'd transformed into an actual wolf.

Most people aged out of it after Juniors though, for these who didn’t, Tyler had heard it was worse in the NHL where the concentration of magic was higher, so Tyler shouldn't have been surprised when he opened his hotel room door to find Looch standing there with a screaming child in his arms.

“He can be your problem now,” Looch tells him, holding the child out to him. “I need a drink.”

Tyler would have guessed rookie hazing, if Chara wasn’t so adamantly against even using that word, and even so instinctively shrinks back. Looch just takes a step into the room to dump the kid on the floor and turns to walk away.

Tyler calls after him but Looch only waves back. “You'll be fine,” Looch says, as though there isn’t an actual child in Tyler’s room. 

Since he can’t abandon them to chase down Looch and demand answers, Tyler shuts the door and turns back to his new guest.

The tantrum doesn't stop but Tyler can make out actual words now they're not muffled on his teammate's shoulder. Unfortunately they're also clearly not English. Tyler recognizes who it is at the same time; only tiny Tuukka would have a face that elfin cute and still be filled with rage. 

Goalies usually look out for each other, and it’s mostly them who still suffer from the magic flux, but Tyler can’t imagine Thomas wanting to look after a child and especially not a screaming one.

When Tyler's sisters were little, he'd been told the best thing to do was to ignore their tantrums. If they learnt that screaming got attention, they would keep doing it. Hoping that was actual parenting advice, Tyler walks around his deaged goalie back to the bed where he puts his headphones back in and hits play on the film.

It only takes a couple of minutes before the screaming stops then another minute until the bed shifts. Tyler glances briefly up to check Tuukka is pulling himself onto the bed safely. He can't remember if injuries usually carry over but he doesn’t want to see the disappointed look Chara will give him if he breaks their goalie.

At least he doesn’t have to worry about fucking up an actual child. From what he’s heard about this sort of thing, it’s their Tuukka in there, he’s just temporarily lost access to most of his memories. Tyler hopes he hasn’t forgotten how to speak English because he doesn't think Google translate is going to help when Tuukka almost certainly can't read or write.

Unless Finnish kids learn that sort of thing early? Tyler tries to estimate how old Tuukka is right now; he’s walking around, so he’s got to be at least two and from his height, Tyler guesses he’s probably around 3 or 4.

Tyler hadn't been expecting the small child to try to wiggle under his arm but he happily tucks Tuukka into his side so he can see the screen. He hopes Pirates of the Caribbean isn't going to horribly traumatise the kid.

Then he registers that Tuukka's wearing actual children's clothing. He must have been switched for a while if they've managed to find age-appropriate clothes and get him into them, or it’s happened enough times before that they bring children’s clothes with them on roadtrips.

And Tuukka must have been more cooperative then than when Looch brought him here. Maybe Chara or someone else speaks Finnish, which begs the question why they wouldn’t have ended up being the designated babysitter instead of Tyler, who would have thought he was anyone’s last resort. It doesn’t seem Chara’s style to be a test so he has to assume someone has a good reason for choosing him.

Maybe Tyler should have spent more time since the draft reading the Bruins press - it would probably have mentioned if Tuukka had missed multiple games without an injury, though some teams lied about that, and while they weren’t supposed to say what a player’s particular quirk was, there would always be speculation.

Tyler's phone buzzes but, rather than an explanation from Chara or any of the As, it's just Jordan telling Tyler not to expect him back. Tyler guesses he’s been swapped with Tuukka but he would have at least expected his roomie to want his bag.

Maybe he's been told to avoid overwhelming their clearly stressed goaltender but why they thought Tyler would be best at that is still a mystery.

Tyler scrolls through his contacts, but he can’t work out who he could call and actually tell the whole story to, apart from the people who are also in this hotel and could easily have given him more information if they wanted to. He’s tempted to call his mom but Tyler doesn’t want to worry her. He puts his phone to one side, and turns his attention back to the movie, trying to ignore the fact that his company is their suddenly tiny goaltender.

The movie is just getting to the good part when, apparently encouraged by his lack of objections, Tuukka says something. It sounds like a question and his tiny teammate is looking at him hopefully but it's definitely Finnish.

Pausing the movie, Tyler feels bad when he has to shake his head. “English only, bud.”

Tuukka repeats himself and Tyler is horrified to see tears in his eyes. He feels like a monster, almost expecting his mom to turn up suddenly and shout at him like she had when he'd made one of the girls cry.

“Hey no, I just need you to help me out a bit here, bud.” He shrugs as widely as he can and looks confused. It isn't difficult. “Can you show me?”

Tuukka looks around the room then plops himself down off the bed and runs over to the desk, pulling at the menu.

“Oh, you’re hungry?” When Tuukka looks back at him Tyler mimes eating then rubs his stomach. “Hungry?”

Tuukka nods eagerly and Tyler realises he has another issue of whether he should he order something his grown-up teammate would eat or pick something more suitable for a toddler. What did kids in Finland even eat anyway? He plays it safe by ordering a variety of options.

Once the food arrives Tuukka chatters away. Tyler tries to nod and smile at appropriate points though he doesn't understand a word. Tuukka picks haphazardly at the food, interspersed with long glances at Tyler as though he’s waiting to be told off for playing with it. He does eat some of it and Tyler knows plenty of their allegedly adult team-mates are fussy about their diets so he isn’t going to pretend that it’s a big deal now Tuukka’s smaller.

He restarts the movie and within minutes Tuukka falls asleep against him. Tyler decides to keep watching and let him sleep through rather than risk waking him up moving him.

Tuukka is fast asleep when the end credits role and, deciding it surely won't hurt Tuukka to go a day or so without brushing his teeth, Tyler manages to get the cover over him without waking him.

At least it's a twin so there is another bed, even if he has to dump Jordan's case off it first. Hopefully he will wake up to find their goaltender is back to normal - these sorts of switches don’t tend to last more than a day or two.

Unfortunately, in the morning, Tuukka is already sitting up in bed and has managed to turn the TV to cartoons by the time Tyler's alarm goes off.

There is a knock on the door and Tyler hasn’t ordered any room service so he looks through the viewing hole to check it's a teammate. He isn't sure how cautious he's supposed to be about Tuukka’s situation.

Fortunately it's only Bergy and he’s carrying a small holdall. Tyler checks Tuukka is still engrossed in his cartoons before opening the door.

"You both survived the night?" Bergy asks, trying to peer into the room without actual coming all the way in. "Didn’t strangle him in the night."

It doesn't sound like Bergy's joking but he must be so Tyler forces himself to laugh. “He wasn’t so bad.” It feels weird talking about Tuukka behind his back and Tyler hopes Tuukka isn’t listening, or that he hasn’t got his English back yet. 

Bergy looks doubtful. “Do you need me to help you get him changed? Keep him occupied while you shower?”

Though he would kind of like some help, Tyler gets the impression Bergy is only asking to be polite. “I think we’ll manage, thanks.”

That must have been the correct response as Bergy looks almost relieved, passing him the holdall. “That’s good to hear. This should help.”

“What it is?” Tyler asks, even as he wonders why Looch couldn’t have given him whatever it was last night.

Bergy smiles but it seems a little forced. “Just a few things we thought you might need.”

“We?” Tyler frowns as he hefts the bag

“Well, see you downstairs,” Bergy says, and practically runs off without explaining anything more.

Tyler puts the bag onto the bed and it turns out to contain several child-sized outfits, shoes, and toiletries. No toys or skating gear, but it looks as though someone had planned for this. It makes him wonder again if this has happened before, whether to Tuukka or someone else. It would sort of explain why everyone’s being so weird about it.

Tyler tips the clothes out on the bed. There’s a mass of cute animal designs which Tyler can’t quite imagine his serious teammate wearing. Still, they had clearly been prepared for this purpose. "Hey buddy," he says, drawing Tuukka's attention away from the TV. "Do you want to come and pick out an outfit for today?"

Tuukka looks at the clothes, his tiny face wrinkling up into a frown. Then he looks Tyler straight in the eye and says, very clearly, "No."

Tyler isn't sure if he should be delighted Tuukka appears to have some of his English back or worried about what that flat refusal implies. Then again, he's already decided to pick his battles. He can probably take Tuukka down to breakfast in his pyjamas but they aren't going to be warm enough for the rink. He thoughtfully sifts through the clothes, working out which were worth insisting on. Socks are a necessity and there’s a little jacket which doesn’t look too offensively cute, so a coat as well.

The socks don’t provoke any resistance but any attempt to change Tuukka out of the pyjamas is quickly rebuffed. Tyler does at least manage to persuade him to pull on a sweater over the top and, once he’s dressed to both of their satisfaction, Tyler says, “Ready for breakfast, buddy?”

Tuukka holds out his arms and it takes Tyler a minute to realise he wants to be picked up. Well, if he could carry his sisters, he could certainly manage a little kid.

On a whim, as he picks Tuukka up, Tyler swings him around. Tuukka looks up at him wide-eyed as Tyler asks, "Again?"

He nods and then as Tyler spun them both again and again, he finally got to hear Tuukka laugh.

Still carrying Tuukka, Tyler has barely taken ten steps outside his room when he runs into two of their trainers. Neither of them look particularly surprised to see him with a child so he guesses they already knew about Tuukka’s situation but Stevie, the more senior of the two, frowns as he asks, “Where are you going?”

“Team breakfast?” Tyler says, confused.

The trainers give each other a look and then Stevie steps forward, putting a hand on Tyler’s shoulder. “Look, it’s better not to risk bringing him down to breakfast. We don’t want to disturb anyone. Why don’t you get room service - we’ll cover the bill - and join us on the bus when it’s time to leave?”

Tyler lets himself get herded back into his room. “Well I guess it’s just the two of us then, buddy.” He tries to put Tuukka down so he can look at the menu but the tiny goalie wraps his arms around Tyler’s neck and refuses to let go. Tyler can imagine that another tantrum is coming if he tries to force the issue and he had enough of that last night so he quickly changes direction.

Once they are sat in the desk chair, Tuukka lets himself be rearranged so they can both look at the menu. “What do you want, buddy?” Tyler asks. “Pancakes? Eggs? Fruit?” He’s going to get an omelet for himself and tries to remember if he’s ever watched what Tuukka usually has for breakfast. .

Tuukka pats at the menu and Tyler figures it can’t hurt to let him pick, not that he’s sure Tuukka can actually read it right now. He holds it until Tuukka points at something. “Fruit? Good choice.”

Breakfast is messy and it’s probably a good job they hadn’t gone down to the restaurant because they both need to change tops after - Tuukka because he’s dripped red fruit juices all down his front and Tyler because Tuukka managed to knock over his coffee and he’d got his sleeve in it.

Tyler carries Tuukka out to the bus with the shoes he’d refused to put on in his own jacket pockets. He isn’t sure if they’re going to have a plan for what to do with him during morning skate but at least it’s not open to the public.

They’re amongst the last ones onto the bus and there is a clear gap left at the front. Tyler tries to looks for Brad, who he usually sits with, but Tuukka is fidgeting to get down. He clambers across the seats to press his face against the window and, after another glance around where no-one will meet his eyes, Tyler sits in the aisle seat. 

Chara comes to sit across the aisle from them. "How're you doing?" he asks, gaze on Tuukka where he is trying to wriggle out of his coat. Tyler grabs hold of an arm to steady it for him.

“We're good,” he says brightly.

Their captain raises his eyebrows and Tyler hopes he isn't looking too closely at what Tuukka's wearing and isn't going to ask what he had for breakfast.

Instead Chara asks, “You both slept alright?”

“Yeah? I guess,” Tyler says. “We watched a movie and he went to sleep then he was watching cartoons when I woke up this morning. So-” He shrugs, not sure what else the captain wants to hear.

Chara nods along. “Well, that’s good. I need to speak to Rex now but come and find me if you need anything.”

Tyler has a bunch of questions but Chara gets up and leaves without giving him a chance to ask any of them. 

It isn’t a long drive to the arena and fortunately there are no press waiting at the rink entrance so they make it into the player area unharassed. One of the trainers stop Tyler at the locker room door and takes Tuukka off him.

“Is he going to be okay?” Tyler asks.

Don’t you worry,” he says. “It’s no problem.”

“Be good, buddy,” Tyler tells Tuukka, holding his hand out for a fist bump and feeling a little sad to let him go. “I'll see you soon.”

When they get off the ice, Tyler can hear a child's yelling in the distance but, distracted by the normality of practice, he doesn't put it together with Tuukka's current state until the rest of the team start sharing significant looks. 

Chara pinches the bridge of his nose, looking suddenly tired. "Can you take him again?"

Tyler looks around, hoping he is talking to someone else. “Me?”

“He seems to like you. But don’t worry if you don’t feel up to it, I’m sure we can find someone else.” He doesn’t sound very certain though and Tyler figures this morning wasn’t so bad.

“No, I can do it,” he says. “I’m just not sure how I’m your best choice.”

“He likes you.” Chara smiles and Tyler gets the same feeling he had this morning with Bergy, that it isn’t quite genuine.

There isn’t much Tyler can add so he follows his captain down the corridor to meet the trainers. They don’t need to know where they’re going as they can just follow the sound of Tuukka’s cries. All Tyler’s questions escape him as the volume of the cries increases and he can’t help worrying what could possibly have happened to Tuukka.

When they finally turn a corner and find Tuukka on the floor surrounded by three staff members, Tyler is relieved that Tuukka doesn’t seem to be actually hurt. Tuukka’s tantrum last night hadn’t been anything like this - his face is red and tear-stained and he’s waving his arms and legs in a full blown meltdown. If this is what the others had experienced then their worries make more sense.

Z takes a breath and looks as though he is about to step forward but Tyler gets there first, pushing through the group and crouching down beside Tuukka.

“Hey buddy, what’s the matter?” Tyler tries to keep his voice bright, like he would talk to kids wanting an autograph.

Tuukka’s face brightens the moment he sees Tyler and he flings himself into his arms, almost knocking him backwards, babbling a wave of words which would probably be indistinguishable even in English since his head is buried in Tyler’s mid-section.

The trainers look relieved and Chara gives Tyler an approving nod. “You seem to have everything under control. I’ll leave you to it.”

By the time Tuukka has settled down, and they have had some lunch, the coach has gone without them and so they take a taxi back to the hotel alone. Tyler isn’t sure how that works with trying to be inconspicuous but the driver doesn’t give any sign of recognising him so it must be okay.

Tyler was supposed to be taking a nap but Tuukka hadn’t wanted to sleep so instead they end up with most of the bedding on the floor after Tyler tries to make him a blanket fort.

Tuukka is chattering again, in a mixture of Finnish and English. It doesn’t seem to bother him that Tyler understands less than half of what he says so long as he looks interested and makes noises in the right spaces.

There's a gentle knock and, before Tyler can get up to check who it is, Z calls out "Tyler?" Tuukka takes that moment to screech in laughter when he realises he's all caught in the towel. 

Tyler glances around at the state of the room but he can't really turn the captain away and he doesn't think there's anything he can do to fix it quickly. "Coming!" he says.

Z tries the door before he gets there but Tyler did at least have enough sense to lock it. Tuukka could definitely reach the handle and he didn't want to chase a kid down the corridor. Tyler lets him in and prepares for his judgement.

Instead, Tuukka exclaims, "Look Z - I caterpillar!" and Z smiles down at him, his expression softening.

"I just wanted to let you know that the trainers will pack up Tuukka's room but you still need to do your own." He looks pointedly at Tyler's open and mostly empty case. "You should probably tidy up in here too." Tyler follows his gaze to the bathroom this time, where there are visible puddles and bubbles on the floor after he’d finally managed to get Tuukka washed up a little and a change of clothes. "And don't forget to leave a tip."

“I won’t,” Tyler promises. He’s grateful the mess from breakfast has already been cleaned up and knows this heap won’t be quick to tidy. 

"At least he seems happy," Z says, looking down at Tuukka who is gleefully rolling  
about on top of the covers, still tangled in the bath towel.

Despite his insistence that he isn’t tired, Tuukka does end up falling asleep a little after Z leaves, so Tyler takes the opportunity to pack his case and the holdall of little Tuukka’s things.

Thomas was always going to be in net for this one and Hutchinson from Providence meets them at the rink as Tuukka is clearly in no state to back-up.

After what had happened in the morning, Tyler hadn’t been looking forward to leaving Tuukka for the game but that didn’t mean he wanted to be scratched. Julien says they’ll call it sickness rather than a healthy scratch and that it gives Tuukka’s absence more believability.

Rather than sitting in the box, they end up watching from a meeting room since Chiarelli doesn’t want to risk Tuukka being seen in this condition.

Tyler manages to persuade one of the PR guys to go out to the arena store before warm-ups and pick up a kid-sized stick and ball set for Tuukka. He then spends most of the first period practicing stickhandling with him. It doesn’t take long before Tuukka wants a net. 

Tyler doesn’t know what age Tuukka had started skating and he doubts he had been playing goalie when he’d been this age for real so he takes it as a sign that their Tuukka is definitely still in there.

Fortunately that’s the point the intern returns with drinks and snacks. Judging from the meals they’ve had so far, Tuukka doesn’t seem to be too fussy with food and that’s able to distract him for a bit without any trouble. 

By the middle of the second, Tuukka is visibly flagging. It’s not that late for a hockey game, but it probably is for a four year old, or whatever he is. Now he’s speaking English again Tyler could probably ask, but it doesn’t seem that important.

“Looking tired, buddy,” Tyler says. “Do you want a nap?”

“No,” Tuukka insists. Tyler kind of does so he flops back onto the sofa. He’ll only close his eyes for a few seconds; how much trouble can one small Finn get into in a minute? But once he’s there it seems like a lot of effort to get back up and he can still hear Tuukka moving around, chattering to himself in a mixture of English and Finnish.

The end of period buzzer is what wakes him and Tyler is disorientated for a minute by the unfamiliar quiet room. Hold on, quiet? He sits up abruptly, looking around in a panic. If he’s lost Tuukka, Z will actually kill him.

Tyler looks over to find Tuukka drawing on the wall, with the markers which go with the coaches’ whiteboards. “Oh, sh-” He catches himself before the swear escapes. “Oops,” he goes with instead.

“Oops?” Tuukka says, echoing his tone. He looks up at Tyler, biting his lips as though waiting to see what he will do.

Tyler stares at the picture, which kind of looks like it’s supposed to be a bear, then shrugs. There isn’t much point making a fuss about it. “Ah, well, guess I'd better leave a really big tip for the cleaners here. You'll have to owe me dinner when you're big again at make up for it.”

Tuukka seems surprised. Tyler wonders exactly what has happened the previous times he’s been small or maybe when he was an actual child and he can’t help feeling angry - it doesn’t seem fair to get annoyed over something so minor and there’s no good reason for telling him off over it; Tyler figures their goalie’s mind is still in there and adult Tuukka already knows not to draw on walls, or at least one’s that aren’t his own, so why waste both of their energy on something which will be a moot point in a day or so.

Tyler holds out a hand and after a moment Tuukka puts the pens into it, as though he already knew he’d been doing something he shouldn’t. Tyler places the pens on the top of the whiteboard, out of reach where he probably should have put them in the first place and wonders if that was a test and, if so, if he’d passed.

He doesn’t have long to consider it before the trainers come to find them. They want them to head out to the coach before the third finishes, to reduce the chance of being spotted by the press.

Tuukka is very unhappy about being woken and makes sure everyone around knows it. They won’t let Tyler carry him so all he can do is trail along after with his arms full of the things he’s manage to collect for Tuukka.

On the coach, Tyler manages to settle him again and drifts off to sleep himself until the lights come on when the rest of the team join them.

When Tuukka starts to stir, face already scrunched up, Tyler pulls him into his lap, pressing Tuukka’s head against his head and using the blanket to block out the light. Z’s among the first on and he looks fondly down at them before turning back to hush the others.

They are heading straight to the airport but apparently it’s too much to hope that Tuukka will sleep straight through until they’re on the flight. They don't usually have a lot of time to spare but tonight it turns out the plane is delayed so at least they get to go into the terminal. 

Tuukka is clearly at the stage of overtiredness which means a meltdown is coming but Tyler manages to find a small gift shop still open to distract him. He lets Tuukka pick a comic, which comes with a small set of crayons, “As you seem to like drawing so much” he tells him, and a soft toy, while he picks up some more kid-friendly snacks since he doesn’t know if the menu on the plane will have a toddler in mind. 

Tuukka hates the plane, especially the take-off. Tyler hates to see the tears down his tiny face as he rubs at his ears. As soon as the seatbelt light goes out, Tyler lets the tiny goalie climb into his lap.

Tyler had been worried Tuukka would want to spend the entire flight running up and down the aisle and that he would disturb the rest of the team. It’s only a short flight so it doesn’t matter too much to Tyler if he stays awake but he knows the older guys need their sleep.

Instead, Tuukka happily chatters to him as he does some coloring in, ignoring the pattern on the page to draw something with lots of black and yellow. Tyler obediently passes him the crayons as Tuukka points at them, evidently quickly giving up on trying to teach Tyler Finnish.

“Who’s that, buddy?” Tyler asks him, as the picture starts to take shape. He thinks it’s two people, one of them a lot taller than the other.

Tuukka only giggles so Tyler pretends to be thinking hard. “Is it Z?” he guesses. “He’s really tall.”

“No!” Tuukka yells, giving Tyler a disapproving look which seems more like their grown-up goalie than a small child.

“No?” Tyler pretends to be confused. “Then who could it be?” he asks with an exaggerated shrug.

“You!” Tuukka jabs a finger into Tyler’s chest as he laughs. He might be tiny but he has really pointy fingers. He laughs at Tyler’s disgruntled expression, flopping over into Tyler’s lap.

Tyler hopes anyone wanting to sleep has earplugs in though he can’t help but be relieved at how much happier Tuukka seems now then when he was first left with Tyler. He supposes it must be hard to suddenly become tiny and unable to do all the things you are used to and then to have no-one speak your language so he can understand why Tuukka was so upset.

Fortunately it doesn’t take long before the long day catches up with Tuukka, who drops off to asleep in the middle of a sentence, leaning over until his head rests on Tyler’s arm. 

The landing is less traumatic then the take-off, Tuukka barely wakes up until the bump of the wheels touching down and even then he is too sleepy to make a fuss. Tyler carries Tuukka onto the bus and lets him wrap his arms around his neck, resting his head in the crook of his neck.

The goalie is kind of cute like this, his face relaxed in sleep, and Tyler guesses that’s supposed to be the point of this sort of transformation, a reaction to extreme stress. He sort of knows how that feels though, as a top 3 pick, he’s probably not going to get sent down to Providence while, as a back-up goalie, Tuukka’s place in Boston probably feels far less assured.

Even with the time zone change, by the time they get to the new hotel it’s nearly two in the morning. Savvy helps Tyler carries his and Tuukka’s bags to their room - Tyler isn’t at all surprised that they’ve been assigned to share since no-one else seems to want the responsibility.

Since Tuukka is already half-asleep, Tyler decides to skip out on trying to get him into the shower or to brush his teeth. If Tuukka’s still little in the morning, they can cross that bridge then.

It probably isn’t worth waking him up enough to change into pyjamas either, so Tyler just helps him out of his coat and sweater. He tucks Tuukka in the other bed, hoping he will sleep there. 

Tyler wakes in the middle of the night. At first he’s confused, then he hears a whimpering sound. Tyler turns on the light to see Tuukka is shaking, beads of sweat on his face. He tentatively puts his hand on Tuukka’s forehead to check for a temperature, hoping he’s not getting ill. Tuukka bolts upright, crying out as he wakes up and Tyler folds him into his arms without hesitation.

“Did you- Were you having a nightmare?” Tyler asks, even though he isn’t sure how much English Tuukka understands right now.

Tuukka burrows closer into Tyler’s arms and he can feel the sharp chin digging into him as Tuukka nods.

Tyler might not know much about children but Tuukka isn’t the first room-mate he’s sat with after a nightmare. Besides, he remembers going to climb into his mom’s bed after a bad dream when he was a kid. “You want to tell me what it was about?”

At first Tuukka shakes his head and Tyler isn’t sure what he’s supposed to do next. His mom had always sung lullabies to send him back to sleep but he doesn’t think Tuukka’s going to be comforted by him doing that. He wonders if he could find Finnish lullabies online.

Tuukka only clings tighter to him when Tyler tries to reach for his phone so he just pats him on the shoulder, which turns into rubbing his back like he’s seen people doing in movies.

It seems to work as Tuukka stops shaking. Eventually, in a voice which is barely more than a whisper, Tuukka says, “I was all on my own. Everyone left me behind.”

“I’m not going to leave you behind, baby, I promise,” Tyler tells him.

Tuukka’s sheets and clothes are damp with sweat, so Tyler helps him change into his clean pyjamas then lets him climb in beside him. It doesn’t take Tuukka long to fall back asleep but Tyler lies awake for a while thinking.

He doesn’t want to make any assumptions but it’s surely no wonder Tuukka’s having nightmares about being left alone when half the team have made it clear they don’t want to bother with him.

Tyler doesn’t understand why they’re all acting like dealing with Tuukka is such a hassle and he can’t imagine what issues the others could have had. Even Chara had seemed to think it was a great favour that Tyler was willing to take Tuukka again and, despite the meltdown, hadn’t actually offered to help. 

When Tyler’s alarm goes off the next morning, and he finds himself alone, he’s disorientated. It takes a moment to realise what is wrong; Tuukka is nowhere in sight, and then a little longer to realise he can hear the shower running.

Tyler’s pretty sure that’s a good sign he’s back to normal but he feels he ought to check. When he knocks on the bathroom door, it’s Tuukka’s usual voice which responds. Tyler is both relieved and oddly disappointed.

He doesn’t expect thanks so isn’t surprised when Tuukka sweeps out of the bathroom without saying a word.

When they show up for team breakfast, Tuukka back to his usual grumpy adult self, Tyler sees the looks of surprise before Tuukka takes his usual seat, leaving Tyler to find his own.

He can hear Marchy try asking Tuukka what Tyler’s got that the rest of them haven’t. Tuukka just smiles enigmatically.

Bergy sits down next to him. “So, what did you do?”

Tyler searches his memory for some way he might have fucked up. “Nothing?” he ventures

Bergy rolls his eyes. “I meant with Tuukka? It took a week for him to switch back last time and I didn't think my eardrums were going to recover. Even Z couldn’t get him to calm down.”

That explains a lot. Even so, Tyler didn't think he’d done anything special. And he thinks mentioning the nightmare would probably be a breach of Tuukka’s confidence so he simply shrugs. “I don’t know what to tell you. He was basically asleep when we got to the hotel last night and by the time I woke up he was back to normal.”

“You must have done something?” Bergy insists. “What happened during the game?”

Tyler shrugs, again unsure how much he wants to share. “We just hung out. I don’t know - normal kid stuff?

“Well, you're the Tuukka whisperer now, kid,” he says. “Good luck.”

Tyler frowns. He can’t imagine what they must all have been doing to mess up that much. “Does this happen a lot?”

“3 times last season,” Ference interrupts. “And it was worse every time. Everyone else has tried and failed to calm him down. I thought they’d send him down for sure if it went the same again this year.”

That feels unfair. Surely they know it’s not something Tuukka can control. “Well, it didn’t seem so hard,” Tyler tells them.

Bergy laughs. “Yup, definitely calling on you first next time.” He leaves for his usual seat and Ference turns back around.

If there’s going to be a next time, Tyler catches himself wondering what sort of things he could buy to be prepared.


	2. Tuukka Explains

Tuukka had heard plenty of theories over the years but, for him, being ‘de-aged’ doesn’t involve time travel or total amnesia, and it certainly wasn’t unresolved childhood issues, whatever some people thought - his parents had always been caring and supportive. 

The first time it had happened, when playing for the Finnish junior team, the coaching staff had simply carried on and done their best to include him. They didn’t make a big deal out of it and he switched back after a couple of days feeling rested. It had happened a couple more times during Juniors with much the same result.

When he got to Providence it had been different - he had been made to feel it was a huge inconvenience. The language barrier didn’t help but Tuukka got the impression they would have been happier if he’d had a simpler magical quirk and he spent the time being kept away from the team as though he would be a distraction. For Tuukka, his team had always been familiar, and his younger self still knew about hockey, so he could never understand why he was being kept away from his teammates, which made the experience worse.

Tim Thomas turned into a bear and never remembered anything, which honestly sounded much easier.

The only other Finn on the Providence roster, Nokelainen, had played most of the year in Boston and, though Tuukka mostly understood English in his childish state even if he couldn’t speak it, all his understanding was warped through an infant brain, which left him struggling to keep up and even more frustrated. 

It doesn’t feel like being trapped the way some other players have described it, more as though waves of emotion keep crashing into him and he can’t withstand them. Previously he’s had to battle them alone, finally shifting back once they’ve exhausted him. It leaves him embarrassed at such un-Finnish behaviour and he hates the way it seems to push the team further away.

Tuukka has always been aware something is off when he's little, even when he can’t explain what. In Ilves it hadn’t seemed important but here in America it feels he is always reminded how he doesn’t fit in. Which is why it has always hurt as he’s been passed from one of the team’s veterans to another, through the journeyman players, until this time he ended up with their rookie, who hadn’t been anything like he would have expected.

He’s never had anyone just accept everything as easily as Seguin had, give him their attention in such a casual way. The older players on the team have always tried to parent him before, which had only wound him up further. Tyler had treated him as though he was still his teammate.

When he wakes up back in his adult body, after less than 36 hours, Tuukka just feels relieved. He wants to thank Tyler but first he needs time to find his equilibrium, to figure out what it meant that this time had been so different.

Tuukka hasn’t had much to do with Tyler before this. The team trends older and Tuukka is part of the group which isn’t so interested in going out to bars or frat parties and drinking, nor is he particularly into computer games. If he didn’t know what it was about Tyler which had made this shift so easy, maybe it’s time to change that.

Remembering Tyler’s quip after he’d drawn on the wall - and he can’t stop another wave of embarrassment at that memory since he’d been such a brat - the next day, Tuukka corners Tyler after practice. “You said I owed you dinner.”

Tyler laughs and it lights up his whole face. “You going to take me out for steak?”

Tuukka was expecting awkwardness but clearly that’s not Tyler’s style. “If that’s what you want.”

There is a spark of something in Tyler's eyes as he readily agrees. “Well, if you’re paying, I’m easy.”

Tuukka hates being driven by other people so he arranges to pick Tyler up that evening. Tyler looks impressed at his car, which he should be if he has any taste in such things. 

“Are you taking me somewhere fancy?” Tyler asks, almost eagerly. “Remember I’m just a poor rookie on my first contract.”

Tuukka can’t help but laugh. “You’re probably actually making more money than me with all your bonuses, Mr. Second Overall.”

“Well, maybe,” Tyler grins as he settles back in his seat. “I’m still hoping for steak.”

“I should take you to somewhere like Olive Garden instead,” Tuukka threatens. 

“If that’s where you want to go,” Tyler teases back.

The rest of the journey is taken up with small talk - the Boston traffic, the weather, how the season is going. It’s surprisingly effortless to talk to Tyler; he’s so easy-going, it isn’t any wonder the team were able to take advantage and Tuukka can’t help feeling guilty about that. 

Tuukka doesn’t bring up the subject of his de-aging until they are sat in the restaurant and waitress has taken their order and brought them their drinks.

“I’m sorry you had to put up with babysitting me,” Tuukka starts. “It wasn’t fair the team putting that on a kid like you.”

“You don’t have to apologise. Besides,” Tyler objects, “You’re only a couple of years older than me.”

“Five years,” Tuukka says. Tyler’s the same age as his little brother, and maybe there's something in that. “But that doesn’t matter, you shouldn’t have had to deal with me.”

“Don’t worry,” Tyler tells him. “You were a cute kid. It was fun.”

“No-one else has ever described me as ‘cute’” Tuukka says, certainly not as long as he’s been in America. It hasn’t been fun in years either. It still surprises him that Tyler should have been the one to see _him_ despite the shift.

“Not even when you were an actual child?’ Tyler sounds almost sad about it.

Tuukka shrugs. “Maybe. I don’t really remember being that young first time around.”

“So, should I count on this happening again?” Tyler’s expression seems to suggest he thinks that would be a good thing, and so Tuukka doesn’t waste time denying it. 

“Probably. Unless turning back early this time means I’ve got it out of my system. But that doesn’t usually work for goalies.” Last season he might have felt worse about that but now it doesn’t feel so daunting.

“Well, I didn’t mind,” Tyler says. “I don’t know what everyone else was making such a fuss about.”

Tuukka isn’t sure if he should be grateful to Tyler or angry with the rest of the team for making him feel bad about it for so long.

His silence doesn’t seem to bother Tyler, who is still talking. “Is there anything I should know for next time? Any favourite food? Favourite kids’ book or cartoon? I know there’s that weird Finnish show with the hippos.” 

“Muumit.” Tuukka has a mental image of Tyler shopping for Muumi pyjamas or bedding and it’s so incongruous he has to laugh. “You don’t have to do that.”

Tyler looks disgruntled for the first time. “Well no, but I’m not smart enough to learn Finnish so you’ll have to tell me the important things in advance.”

That’s- Tuukka doesn’t think anyone has put that much effort into keeping his child-self happy. He still can’t quite believe it could be so easy. “I like mac and cheese,” he offers.

Tyler beams at him. “That’s lucky because I can’t cook anything else.”

Tuukka isn’t certain the virulently orange version he’s seen Americans make from packets really qualifies but he supposes it’s the thought that counts. 

Over dessert, Tyler tells him, “Anyway, one thing I’ve definitely decided is that I’m getting a pet this summer - if I can look after a kid for 24 hours, a dog should be no trouble.”

Tuukka narrows his eyes, as though he’d taken offence. “Are you saying looking after me was like looking after a dog.” 

Tyler just giggles. “No, but everyone said I was too immature to take care of a pet. Now I have evidence I can do it.”

Tuukka feels as though he probably ought to dissuade him but it isn’t really his responsibility. Besides, Tuukka thinks he’d quite like to getting to play with a dog when he’s small. “You’d have to hire a dogsitter for road trips,” is all he replies.

Tyler’s smile broadens. “I’ll bear that in mind.”


	3. Post-Trade Coda

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's Tyler's first game back in Boston after the trade. What could be better than baby goalie time?

When Tyler says he isn’t joining them for dinner, Jamie figures he’s probably feeling nervous before they play Boston for the first time since his trade. Once he’s eaten, he heads up to Tyler’s room and knocks on his door, thinking to share the load, and is surprised when Loui Eriksson answers. Inside the room he can hear a child’s voice.

He didn’t know Tyler knew Loui and the child doesn’t sound like one of Loui’s daughters. “What’s going on?”

“Sorry,” Loui says, looking awkward even as he forces a smile. “He shifted at morning skate and insisted on seeing Tyler. Chara thought I’d be best to brave Dallas territory.”

He makes it sound as though they’re the mafia but Jamie knew he would have been less happy to find someone like Marchand or even Chara himself at Tyler’s door. Jamie isn’t sure who the ‘he’ in question is but he’s happy enough to see Loui. “I just wanted to check Tyler was okay.”

Loui glances back over his shoulder. “Maybe you better see for yourself?”

Tyler is sitting on the hotel room floor with a small curly haired boy in a Bruins Seguin jersey playing with toy trucks. They both look up at Jamie as he comes in and it is the serious eyes that give away the child’s identity as the Bruins goalie, Rask.

“Jamie!” Tyler says, delightedly. “Come and meet my friend.”

Rask gives Jamie the child’s version of his death glare, which is still surprisingly effective.

Jamie sits down beside them. His knees ache immediately and his hips won’t take it for more than a few minutes but he refuses to show weakness to a child, especially not one they might have to play tomorrow.

Loui makes it sound as though this is a normal occurrence and Jamie doesn’t know if the Lego set they are playing with came with Rask or if Tyler had brought it himself. 

“Can I leave you to it then?” Loui asks, after standing around for a minute awkwardly.

“Are you going to stay with me tonight then, buddy?” Tyler asks the transformed goaltender.

The room’s a twin so there’s no reason why he shouldn’t but Jamie wonders at how casually Tyler asks the question.

Rask glares at Jamie again and just nods. It occurs to Jamie that maybe he’s simply shy in the face of a stranger. Adult-Rask might recognise Jamie as the Stars’ captain but that doesn’t mean this version does.

“Are you going to introduce me?” he asks Tyler, in the soft voice he uses for kids. He usually likes children - they’re easier to talk to than adults.

Tyler beams at him. “Jamie, this is Tuukka. Tuukka, this is my friend, Jamie. Can he play with us?”

Rask narrows his eyes at Jamie, who does his best to look non-threatening. “Okay,” he says, picking up the fire-truck and handing it to Jamie. “Paloauto,” he tells him.

“Thank you,” Jamie says, not sure what he’s agreeing to.

“Sorry buddy, Jamie doesn’t speak Finnish either,” Tyler says.

Rask looks disappointed and Jamie feels weirdly guilty about it. He was never great at school but they have always had lots of Finns on the Stars so maybe he should try and learn some.

“It looks like you have everything under control,” Loui says. Jamie startles because he’d forgotten the other man was still there. “Tuukka’s bag is on the bed, I’ll see you all at the rink tomorrow.”

The door shuts behind him and Jamie relaxes. It’s hard to remember not to just stare at Tyler when other people are around but watching him playing with a child tugs at something inside Jamie.

Tyler is totally focused on Rask, in the same way he focuses on Marshall when he plays with him. Jamie is only a little bit jealous; having all of Tyler’s attention is like staring into the sun but Jamie can never bring himself to look away. At least he won't notice Jamie staring while he's distracted.

Rask chatters as he guides the different vehicles around, occasionally stopping to hold one of them up and say something in Finnish, which is presumably what it’s called.

Jamie tries to mimic the words and Tyler practically falls over laughing at the unimpressed look Rask gives him as he corrects his pronunciation. 

“I don’t see you trying it,” Jamie says, but it’s worth the embarrassment for the delighted look on Tyler’s face and Rask probably won’t remember any of it anyway. Lehts never remembers what happens when he turns into a stoat and Jamie can kind of see how it would be relaxing to shift and not have to worry about anything.

It’s more fun playing with a kid, though he’s not so sure about the fraternising with the opposing team part. He guesses it’s hard to explain trades to a five year old, or whatever Rask is right now.

The only problem is that he can’t exactly ask Tyler if he’s nervous about facing his old team in front of that team’s goalie, even if the goalie in question won’t remember. On the positive side, if Loui had been right that Rask ha’d only shifted this morning, they’re probably going to be facing the Bruins back-up which should make it easier.

Besides Tyler looks so much more relaxed than he had on the flight so Jamie can’t begrudge him this. And Rask is kind of cute as a kid anyway. Maybe Jamie can just let himself enjoy this too.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, that's the end for now. I might be inspired to write more short scenes in the future so feel free to prompt anything you'd like to see.


End file.
